Free Bound by the Mist (Mists of Eria) by Lisa Kumar Page A

same magic that protected them and nature, would choose a truly undesirable complete-bond mate for his son. Relian hoped his father was right. Would Cal be able to handle all they would tell her and all they couldn’t?
    He fortified himself and offered his father his hand. Talion took it, giving him a supportive glance as he slowly drew back the sleeve of Relian’s robe. His father now seemed the one who was tense if the furrow of his brow was any indication. Relian’s mouth twitched. It amused him when his sire was more atwitter than he was.
    Once his father revealed the binding for all to see, many gasps and accompanying shocked expressions arose. All around the room, people asked the expected questions: “To a human woman? How is this possible? Why would the veil do this?”
    Talion allowed this talk to continue for a full thirty seconds before he held up his hand to forestall a rising tide of questions. One of the last voices to die down spat out, “This is a travesty.”
    Relian narrowed his eyes and sent his cousin Eamon a quelling look, while his father raised an inquisitive brow at the vocal elf before speaking. “Is that all, Eamon? It is a travesty only if I say it is.” Eamon flung his black hair over a shoulder but remained silent.
    The king addressed the room. “We know this seems dire news: the binding of one of our own to someone who is of human birth and the involvement of humankind in our world, even if it is only one woman. After all, we have been closed off from humankind for thousands of years.”
    Kenhel gave a whispered sound of disbelief. “Closed off? Is that what everyone is calling it now? Who closed us off but ourselves?”
    Relian shook his head but didn’t worry. Kenhel might have some unique views, but he wouldn’t air them at this time.
    He caught the end of his father’s speech. “It’s a sobering thought in these shadowed times when everything hangs in a balance we cannot quite fathom. But maybe this woman will hold some answers for us. While we couldn’t find any prophecy regarding her existence in the main library’s prophetic scrolls, we still hold hope of finding one.”
    While the assembled council looked none too pleased, they appeared to see the wisdom of Talion’s words and talked amongst themselves. Eamon stayed conspicuously quiet. Relian smothered a sigh. He and Eamon looked much alike, but that was the only similarity they shared. Thank the skies for that. Relian glanced at his father, who watched the whole scene with a gleam in his eye.
    Talion leaned over to him and said with a hushed satisfaction, “Do you hear what they say amongst themselves? ‘Could an ordinary human woman truly make a difference?’They can’t know for certain, but it opened more possibilities than they previously had. As such, they feel the compulsion to cling strongly to this possible notion, for we've nothing else of significance. Not to mention the veil seems to sanction your upcoming bonding. Our council realizes it isn’t something to take lightly or ignore. We’ll have to watch a few of our members closely, though. They gave their compliance too soon, without quibble. I expected a token resistance at the very least.”
    Relian nodded his agreement. If discounting those individuals who often sought out strife—he shot a look at Eamon—the binding did give the councilors some hope of an answer. Admittedly, they had to wonder what a human woman could achieve that their own people could not. He certainly did. Maybe it wasn’t that simple. Might it not be a matter of guidance rather than achievement? But what could a young human offer to a people who were centuries, millennia, older?
    The king finished his planned speech. “We now need to look closely into the various options that the bond might provide if it’s completed. There’s still the problem of his affianced arriving in our world, though the veil may well take care of that for us. Otherwise, we will have to devise a way